Chicago Drone Service is a local operator, not a national booking platform. Owner and pilot Dan Gierke is FAA Part 107 certified and fully insured, and he flies missions across the entire Chicagoland region — the City of Chicago and Cook, DuPage, Lake, Will, and Kane Counties. Because we live and work here, we already know the airspace, the lakefront restrictions, and the LAANC process around O'Hare and Midway. That local knowledge means faster scheduling, legal flights, and footage that actually shows your property or project in its real Chicago context.
Below is a breakdown of where we work and what makes flying in each part of the metro different. Wherever your site sits, we handle the authorizations, the planning, and the on-site safety so you get clean deliverables on a fast 24–48 hour turnaround.
City of Chicago
The city is our home base, and we shoot in nearly every neighborhood. Downtown and dense residential areas come with their own mix of controlled airspace, tall buildings, foot traffic, and event restrictions — all of which we plan around before launch day.
- Central / Downtown: the Loop, River North, West Loop, South Loop, Streeterville, the Gold Coast, and the Magnificent Mile
- North Side: Lincoln Park, Lakeview, Wicker Park, Bucktown, Logan Square, Uptown, Edgewater, and Rogers Park
- West Side: Pilsen, the Near West Side, Garfield Park, and the growing Fulton Market district
- South Side: Hyde Park, Bronzeville, Bridgeport, Beverly, and the South Shore lakefront
The Chicago lakefront and downtown core are some of the most rewarding — and most regulated — places to fly in the country. We coordinate LAANC authorizations, plan flight paths around crowds and landmarks, and choose the right time of day for light and traffic so your aerials of the skyline, lakefront, or a specific building come out clean and compliant.
Cook County
Beyond the city limits, Cook County wraps Chicago with dozens of established suburbs where we frequently document real estate, construction, and commercial properties. Notable communities include Evanston, Oak Park, Cicero, Skokie, Berwyn, Schaumburg, Arlington Heights, Des Plaines, Palatine, Orland Park, and Tinley Park. Many of these sit inside O'Hare or Midway controlled airspace, so we treat LAANC authorization as a standard part of every Cook County job rather than an afterthought.
DuPage County
DuPage is one of the busiest corners of Chicagoland for commercial development, corporate campuses, and high-end residential work. We regularly fly in Naperville, Wheaton, Naperville's office corridors, Downers Grove, Lombard, Elmhurst, Oak Brook, and Carol Stream. Oak Brook's corporate properties and Naperville's neighborhoods are popular for real estate drone photography and construction documentation, and we plan each flight around the county's pockets of controlled airspace.
Lake County
To the north, Lake County stretches from established lakefront towns up toward the Wisconsin border. We serve Waukegan, Gurnee, Libertyville, Vernon Hills, Lake Forest, Highland Park, Buffalo Grove, and Mundelein, among others. Lake County's mix of waterfront estates, industrial parks, and recreational sites is well suited to aerial work — from luxury listings to facility inspections and progress tracking on new developments.
Will County
Will County, to the southwest, is a hub for logistics, warehousing, and fast-growing residential subdivisions. We work in Joliet, Naperville's southern edge, Plainfield, Bolingbrook, Romeoville, New Lenox, and Frankfort. The county's large distribution centers and active construction corridors are ideal for orthomosaic mapping, volumetric stockpile measurement, and recurring site documentation.
Kane County
On the western edge of the metro, Kane County includes Aurora, Elgin, Geneva, St. Charles, Batavia, and the Fox River communities. We cover everything from riverfront downtowns to suburban subdivisions and industrial sites here. Because Kane County sits farther from the city core, it often has more open airspace — but we still confirm every flight against current restrictions before we launch.
We Know Chicago Airspace
The single biggest reason to hire a local pilot is airspace. The Chicago metro is blanketed by controlled airspace around two major airports — O'Hare International and Midway — plus smaller fields and helicopter routes. Flying legally here is not as simple as launching a drone and hoping for the best.
- FAA Part 107: every commercial flight we run is conducted under Part 107 rules by a certified Remote Pilot in Command.
- LAANC authorizations: in controlled airspace near O'Hare and Midway, we request near-real-time LAANC clearances so flights are authorized to the correct altitude before takeoff.
- Downtown and lakefront restrictions: the central city and lakefront carry extra layers of restriction during events, around stadiums, and near sensitive sites. We plan for them.
- Manual waivers: when a site needs authorization that LAANC can't grant automatically, we file the manual request in advance and build the timeline around it.
That groundwork keeps your project legal and on schedule. It also means you can hand us a tricky downtown or near-airport location without worrying about whether the flight can actually happen.
Travel, Scheduling, and Mileage
Because we are based in Chicago, most city and close-in suburban jobs carry little or no travel cost. For sites in the outer counties, any mileage or travel time is included transparently in your quote up front — no hidden fees added after the fact. When you request a quote, just tell us the address and we'll confirm scheduling, airspace, and total pricing for that specific location.
What We Capture Everywhere We Fly
No matter which neighborhood or county you're in, you have access to our full range of services. Explore the options that fit your project:
- Aerial photography & 4K video for marketing, events, and brand work
- Real estate drone media for listings and developments
- Thermal and infrared inspections for roofs, solar, and building envelopes
- 3D modeling and digital twins for design, marketing, and asset management
- Orthomosaic mapping for site planning, volumetrics, and GIS/CAD workflows
- Construction site documentation for progress tracking and stakeholder reporting
Not sure which service fits, or whether your site is flyable? Our guide to why drones explains how aerial data compares to traditional methods, and you're always welcome to call and talk it through.
Frequently Asked Questions
What areas does Chicago Drone Service cover?
We serve the entire Chicagoland region: the City of Chicago and Cook, DuPage, Lake, Will, and Kane Counties. That includes neighborhoods like the Loop, River North, West Loop, Lincoln Park, and Hyde Park, plus suburbs such as Naperville, Aurora, Evanston, Schaumburg, Oak Brook, Joliet, Waukegan, and Arlington Heights.
Can you fly drones near O'Hare and Midway?
Yes. Much of Chicagoland sits inside controlled airspace around O'Hare and Midway. As an FAA Part 107 certified pilot, we request LAANC authorizations and, when required, file manual airspace waivers so flights near both airports are legal and properly cleared before we launch.
Do you charge travel fees to the suburbs?
Any travel or mileage is folded into your quote up front, so there are no surprise charges. Projects in the city and close-in suburbs usually have little or no travel cost, and longer drives to the outer counties are quoted transparently before we start.
Can you shoot the Chicago lakefront and downtown?
We regularly work the lakefront and downtown, where airspace, crowds, and restrictions require extra planning. We handle the authorizations and on-site safety so you get the shots you need without compliance headaches.
How do I book a drone pilot in my area?
Request a free quote online or call us. Tell us your location and what you need captured, and we'll confirm airspace, scheduling, and pricing for your specific site anywhere in Chicagoland.
Wherever you are in Chicagoland, we'll bring the right aircraft, the right authorizations, and the right plan to your site.
Request a Free QuoteOr call us directly at 847-881-4344.